Thursday, May 24, 2007
Psalm 108
Psalm 108:1-5 are repeated in Psalm 57:7-11
Psalm 108:6-13 are from Psalm 60:5-12
Psalm 108:9-talks about Moab, Edom and Philistia were Israel’s enemies to the east, south and west respectively. They despised the Israelites and Israel’s God.
In verse 13, rest assured that with God’s help we can claim more than mere survival, we claim victory! Look for ways God can use your distress as an opportunity to show His mighty power. He will deliver you and lift you up if only you choose to take that step of faith to believe and place your focus and dependence upon Him…
Psalm 109
David was upset at being attacked by evil people who slandered him and lied. However, he remained faithful in his prayers to God. God wants us to still shower love and forgiveness upon those who have done evil or treated us wrongly as we are called to hate sin but to love that person. Doing this in our own strength is never easy but with His strength, we will be able to follow David’s example.
In verse 6-20, a call for God to judge the wicked. David was asking God to be swift in his promised judgment of evil people.
In verse 21 …for your name’s sake---means in accordance with God’s character
Psalm 110
In verse 1, this is one of the most quoted psalms in the New Testament because of its clear references to the Messiah. In Matthew 22:41-45, Jesus recited the words of this verse and applied them to Himself. Verses 1 and 6 look forward to Christ’s final and total destruction of the wicked (Revelation 6-9)
In verse 2, prophesies of Christ’s reign on the earth. Revelation 20:1-7
In verse 3 and 4, tells Christ’s priestly work for his people. Heb 5-8
In verse 5 and 6, look forward to the final battle on earth when Christ will overcome the forces of evil. Revelation 19:11-21
ABUNDANT PEACE :)
12:09 AM
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Numbers 31
Midianites were responsible for enticing Israel into Baal worship. God commanded Israel to destroy them (25:16-18). When we discover sin in our lives, we must deal with it completely. Never let any traces of sin live in you…When the Israelites later entered the promise land, it was their indifferent attitude to sin that eventually ruined them. Sin will subtly destroy us. Moses dealt with sin promptly and completely. When God points out sin, response immediately with action to remove it from your life.
V48-50: After carefully accounting for all their men, the officers discovered that not one soldier had been lost in battle. At once they thanked God. After going through tough times, we should be quick to thank God for delivering us and protecting us from severe loss.
Numbers 32
The land on the east side of Jordan had been conquered. The hard work was done by all the tribes together-unity counts. But the tribes of Reuben and Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh did not stop after their land was cleared. They promised to keep working with the others until everyone’s land was conquered-perseverance and overcomer spirit. After others have helped you, do you make excuses to escape helping them? Finish the whole job, even those parts that may not benefit you directly.
ABUNDANT PEACE :)
12:52 AM
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Numbers 28
Instructions concerning offerings:
Following strictly the rituals as instructed by the Lord God took much time and effort, but this gave the people the opportunity to prepare their hearts for worship. Unless our hearts are ready, worship is meaningless. By contrast, God is delighted and we get more from it, when our hearts, mind and spirit are ready to come before the Lord God in worship and thankfulness.
Let us come before the Lord always with the right attitude and heart of worship, always willing with the desire to please God, obey and learn from Him all the time!
Verse 9-10: Why were there extra offering made on the Sabbath day? The Sabbath was a special day of rest and worship commemorating both creation (Exodus 20:8-11) and the deliverance from Egypt (Deu 5:12-15).
Numbers 29
God placed many holidays on Israel’s calendar. The Feast of Trumpets was one of the 3 holidays celebrated in the 7th month (The Feast of Tabernacle and Day of Atonement were other two). These holidays provided a time to refresh the mind and body and to renew one’s commitment to God. We need time to rest in the Lord, to be recharged to serve Him and know His purposes for us again. We need to be separated from our daily routine and concentrate on renewing our commitment to God. So take time to have a retreat with God! Very important, you know!?
Numbers 30
Moses reminded the people that their promises to God and others must be kept. In ancient times, contracts not drawn up. A person’s word was as binding as a signature. To make a vow more binding, an offering was given along with it. Trust is still the basis of our relationship with God and others. Let your yes be yes and no be no. Learn to say no at the right time and with the right reason. When you say yes, make sure you stick to it and fulfill your promise to God and others.
ABUNDANT PEACE :)
1:17 AM
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Numbers 18
Duties of priests and Levites
The Levites, who acted as ministers, had to tithe to support the Lord’s work. None was exempted to return to God a portion of what was received. The Levites owned no land and operated no great enterprises. They were to treat their income the same as everyone else did by giving a portion to the needs of Levites and the tabernacle. The tithing principle is still relevant. So let’s tithe monthly without fail.
Numbers 19
When a person touched a dead body, he was considered unclean (not able to approach God in worship). This ritual purified the unclean person so that he could offer sacrifices and worship God. (Death was the strongest of defilement as it was the final result of sin). The special sacrifice-a heifer (a young cow that has not had a calf) was required-had to be offered by someone who as not unclean. When it had been burned at the altar, its ashes were used to purity water for ceremonial cleansing. The unclean person washed himself, his clothes and belongings with this purified water which serve as an act of becoming clean again. Thank God, now we don’t need to go through this ritual and have the privilege to go direct to the Lord Jesus to ask for forgiveness of sins and the freedom to worship God!
Numbers 20
After wandering in the desert for 40 years, Israel arrived at Kadesh, where Miriam died. There was not enough water and the people complained bitterly. The people were always quick to blame Moses but failed to realize that the problem was the result of their parents’ and their own sin—often problems came about due to our disobedience, lack of faith and stubbornness. Don’t blame God for our own sins. The Lord told Moses to speak to the rock but Moses disobeyed by striking the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out from the rock and gave enough water for the people and livestock. Moses sinned against God when he also took credit- “we bring you water out of this rock”. He was hence forbidden to enter the promised land. Sin can hinder the blessings of God for us.
May all of us be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and choose to obey God and be quick to repent when we sinned against God.
ABUNDANT PEACE :)
12:35 AM
Friday, February 23, 2007
Numbers 1
Written by Moses
The Israelites had camped near Mount Sinai for more than a year. They had received all the laws and regulations passed down to them recorded in the book of Leviticus. They had been transformed into a new nation and equipped for God’s purpose for them. Moses and Aaron were told to number all the men who were able to serve in the army. This book is named for this census, or numbering of the people.
Taking a census is long and tedious, but very crucial task. Those involved in the military had to be counted to know the military strength before entering the Promised Land.
**Whenever we are at a crossroad, important to take inventory of our resources, reflect, pray and move on with hope in the Lord.
Numbers 2
The nation of Israel was organized according to 12 tribes:
1) It was an effective way to manage and govern a large group of people,
2)Made dividing the Promised Land easier,
3) It was part of the culture and heritage,
4) made it easier to keep detailed genealogies
5) made travelling much more efficient.
As the people left Mount Sinai and traveled across the desert, they began to complain, grumble and disobey. Soon problems surfaced and Moses was not able to effectively manage the people. The books of Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers present a contrast between how much we can accomplish when we obey God and how little when we don’t
ABUNDANT PEACE :)
11:10 PM
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Leviticus 22
God wanted the priests to serve Him and the people. The priests help people draw near to God and worship Him. But after Christ’s sacrifice for us, we are given the freedom and privilege to draw close to God directly. Animals with defects of any form were not acceptable as sacrifices to the Lord because they did not represent God’s holy nature. When we give the best of ourselves to the Lord, we show the true meaning of worship and testify to God’s supreme worth.
Leviticus 23
The purpose for the appointed feasts of the Lord is that God wanted the people to set aside special days for the people to come together to 1) rest 2) receive refreshment 3) remembering with thanksgiving all He had done for them. The feast of the unleavened bread reminded the people of Israel their escape from Egypt.
The consumption of unleavened bread shows:
1) The bread was unique – rep. Israel’s uniqueness as a nation.
2) Yeast was a symbol of sin – the bread rep. the people’s moral purity.
3) The bread reminded the people to obey quickly.
The feast of first-fruits – shows that people can only eat from their harvest after they have offered to God.
The feast of weeks represents a festival praising God for a bountiful harvest.
The feast of tabernacle, also known as the feast of in gathering was a special celebration involving the whole family. It teaches the family about God’s nature and what he had done for them and was a time of renewed commitment.
ABUNDANT PEACE :)
12:07 AM
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Exodus 33
God and Moses talked face to face in the Tent of Meeting like friends. Isn’t that awesome? How I wish I can do that with God…Why did Moses receive such privileges from God? Not due to his talents, gifts or character…but simply because God chose Moses in the first place and Moses obeyed, relied and followed what God asked him to do. Though we can’t talk with God face to face, we can still talk with God and Jesus will always be a friend to us. We just ended today’s Friendship event at MagicBox. God is really reminding us that He is our friend yesterday and today and forever. Praise the Lord!
Moses told God not to send them up to where God wanted them to go if the Lord God won’t be there. I fully agree. I will never want to do something or go somewhere if God will not be there with me. I want His guidance, His blessings and His presence to be with me at all times. I am sure all of you will fully agree with me. But pause again, sometimes, we do things without really praying and seeking His approval…hence, stop and invite God to be with you at all times and in doing all things.
Exodus 34
God did not give Moses the vision of His power and majesty, rather His love. God’s glory is revealed in His mercy, grace compassion, faithfulness, forgiveness and justice.
God mentioned-Do not worship any other god, for the Lord whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. God wants us to give Him wholeheartedly-our heart, mind, time, money…
Moses’ face was radiant after he spent time with God. Although we are not like Moses, we still need to spend time with God - reading and mediating upon His words, praying and simply taking delight to be with Him all the time. We can then radiate the beauty of God in us. This is the beauty that will last. Have you seen someone who is physically not that pretty or handsome, but when you spend time with this person, you find this person so beautiful as the beauty of God is reflected through him/her. I definitely want this type of beauty.
Exodus 35
Tabernacle construction- the people were called to construct the tabernacle based on God’s specific instructions. God gives each of us a gift, a talent. We are to use them to His glory. Thank God for whatever gift or talent you have and for some of us who are not sure what are our gifting, ask God to reveal to you and use it for His glory.
ABUNDANT PEACE :)
1:56 AM
